Brazilian submission ace Bibiano Fernandes (7-2) lived up to the hype, and following a stunning semifinal win “The Flash” edged Hiroyuki Takaya (12-7-1) in the main event of DREAM.11 to claim the promotion’s featherweight grand prix title in Kanagawa, Japan.

The back-and-forth battle capped off an exciting night of contests at Yokohama Arena that also featured a lightweight title fight and the semifinals of the promotion’s “Super Hulk” tournament.

The event aired early Tuesday morning in North America on HDNet.

Having already stunned Joe Warren (2-1) earlier in the evening (see below), Fernandes opened quickly against fellow surprise finalist Takaya. An armbar attempt early appeared to have Takaya on defense, and a rear-naked choke attempt would follow shortly after. But Takaya deftly defended each move, forcing Fernandes to engage him on the feet.

Fernandes obliged.

As the opening round continued, the blows on the feet between the two increased in frequency and power. Fernandes appeared fatigued and frustrated that his ground attack had been neutralized, but he persevered through the contest. Even as a Takaya blow saw blood trickling from a cut over Fernandes’ right eye, the Brazilian carried on.

The second round saw Fernandes once again work into a standing rear-naked choke attempt, but Takaya outlasted the effort by backing his opponent into the corner and resting. Forced to settle into a striking role, Fernandes and Takaya went toe-to-toe for the remainder of the round. Much to the delight of the crowd, the two battled shot for shot until the final bell.

The fight was Takaya’s second “Fight of the Night” claim on the evening, and the result was up in the air even as the two converged in the center of the ring to hear the scores. Two of the three judges gave Fernandes the nod, and “The Flash” claimed the well-deserved grand prix crown.

Can you win a fight from the bottom? It’s a question that was almost answered in the DREAM.12 co-feature, but challenger Shinya Aoki (22-4) snatched a potential victory away from former champion Joachim Hansen (19-8-1) with seconds remaining in their lightweight title fight.

Well aware of Hansen’s powerful stand-up, Aoki wisely spent most of the bout in top position on the floor. But “Hellboy” wouldn’t simply hand over the fight, and through a series of upkicks, elbows and even a slick armbar attempt, Hansen appeared to be winning the contest from his back.

But as time wound down in the second frame, Aoki maneuvered first into a guillotine choke attempt from the mount, then an armbar position. Hansen remained calm as Aoki clung to his arm, but as the final seconds of the fight ticked down Aoki yanked again on the arm and rolled out to his side. Hansen’s arm was extended violently, and he was forced to relinquish his lightweight title.

No Aoki fight would be complete without a little bit of controversy, and this bout didn’t fail to provide it. Hansen caught Aoki with a series of stunning upkicks that appeared to end the fight in the opening round, but replays showed the first kick caught the Japanese fighter in the groin, and he was given extended time to recover.

Aoki’s win avenged a July 2008 loss to Hansen in the finals of DREAM’s lightweight grand prix and earned him the title of DREAM’s first Japanese champion. The loss was Hansen’s first action since that July 2008 contest.

Japanese favorites Sakuraba, Kawajiri earn quick stoppages

Japanese legend Kazushi Sakuraba (25-12-1) was a surprising late addition to the DREAM.11 card, though thankfully for fans of the 40-year-old MMA legend he was paired with debuting mixed martial artist Rubin Williams (0-1). And while Williams brought a professional boxing background to the contest, he wasn’t able to channel Ray Mercer.

Sakuraba opened with a series of slapping low kicks that appeared to immediately hurt Williams, then transitioned swiftly to the floor. Williams tried his best to hang on while on the floor. Sakuraba slipped a brief guillotine choke attempt, transitioned to side control, and patiently worked in a kimura. The Japanese legend cranked the hold, forcing his inexperienced opponent to tap.

While hardly in line with the epic battles that are the hallmark of Sakuraba’s storied career, the win was the type of bout destined to be in “The Gracie Hunter’s” future as he appears anything but ready to walk away from the sport.

While Melchor Manibusan (2-4) opened the bout like a man with nothing to lose, Tatsuya Kawajiri weathered the early storm and fought like a man who was expected to win.

After being backed into the corner by a flurry of shots, Kawajiri dropped into Manibusan’s guard. “Crusher” worked meticulously on the floor, deftly passing guard even as Manibusan tried to slow the action, then unleashing a flurry of shots from top position. “Barracuda” covered up, but he was trapped in the corner and absorbing damage, forcing the stoppage.

While Manibusan was hardly championship-level competition, the win was impressive for Kawajiri. The Japanese product grabbed the microphone following the win and immediately called for a slot in a year-ending lightweight title match.

Sokoudjou, Minowa secure year-end bouts in “Super Hulk” finals

The evening’s first “Super Hulk” semifinal appeared to offer little drama on paper, and it played out exactly as expected.

After surviving an initial bullrush from the massive Bob Sapp (10-6-1), Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou (7-4) worked “The Beast” to the floor, established dominant position, and unleashed a flurry of ground and pound blows. Sapp wilted in the face of the attack, and the bout was quickly halted.

The loss dropped Sapp to 1-3 in his past four outings, and the novelty of his hulking frame continues to wear thin. Sokoudjou earned his second-straight win, and though a shot or two may have found their mark a tad late, the ending of the contest wasn’t nearly as problematic as his previous “Super Hulk” win over Jan Nortje.

Minowa evaded Choi’s long reach and devastating strikes throughout the 10-minute first round, though “Minowaman” went far from untouched. As Minowa tired, a few Choi knees found their mark, and the smaller fighter appeared in trouble. But the tide quickly turned in the second frame.

After a failed single-leg takedown attempt, Minowa ducked under his massive opponent’s arm and scampered to Choi’s back. Minowa secured Choi’s massive leg before he could turn and defend, then dropped to his back and attacked the leg. Choi tried briefly to power out of the hold, but he was forced to submit when unable to escape.

The pro-Minowa crowd erupted at the Davis-vs.-Goliath-esque win, and Minowa will now meet Sokoudjou in the “Super Hulk” finals on New Year’s Eve.

Fernandes, Takaya advance to finals; Miyata secures reserve slot

While Warren entered the featherweight grand prix semifinals with a buzz that can only be created through two upset wins to open your MMA career, it was Brazilian submission ace Fernandes that created a quick stir.

After surviving a few initial takedown attempts from Warren, Fernandes calmly secured his opponent’s arm, rolling to lock in the armbar while extending the appendage. With Warren’s arm trapped, the referee called a quick halt to the contest, but there was just on problem: the American didn’t tap.

It didn’t matter for Fernandes, who leapt to his feet made a few inappropriate gestures at Warren, and stormed out of the ring. A shockingly fast win for the Brazilian left Fernandes in great shape for the evening’s finals, and an incensed Warren was left alone in the ring to complain at the referee’s decision to stop the contest before alerted to do so.

Despite his protests, Warren seemed to have little options to escape from his first professional loss.

In addition to determining the evening’s first featherweight grand prix finalist, Takaya and Hideo Tokoro (22-18-1) also put on an early candidate for “Fight of the Night.”

Takaya dominated the standup in the early going, cornering Tokoro as he retreated and catching him with the massive blows that have become his trademark. But Tokoro stood his ground, and in the closing minutes of the opening 10-minute frame delivered a few wild strikes of his own that wobbled Takaya. But rather than continue the assault, Tokoro elected to pull guard, giving Takaya time to clear his head and retaliate.

And retaliate he did.

Takaya postured up and delivered massive downward blows while in Tokoro’s guard. The shots rocked Tokoro and appeared to end the contest, but the match referee ruled time had expired in the round, and Tokoro was given a reprieve.

It wouldn’t matter.

Tokoro answered the bell for the second round, but it was obvious the damage from the first frame was still affecting his performance. Takaya dropped Tokoro with a big left hand, then followed to the floor and delivered a series of right hands that forced the stoppage (again).

Despite delivering a second-straight crowd-inspiring performance, Tokoro drops to just 1-4 in his past five contests.

In the evening’s first bout, Kazuyuki Miyata (8-7) and Daiki Hata (11-6-3) went a full 15 minutes to determine the evening’s bantamweight grand prix reserve fighter. And while Hata actually came the closest to ending the contest, it was Miyata who dominated the action.

Miyata used a steady stream of takedowns to neutralize Hata’s standup skills, and the strategy clearly frustrated “DJ.taiki.” Hata looked energized to open the second, and he nearly earned the win with a deep guillotine choke. But when the hold slipped off, Miyata resumed his smothering, ground and pound attack, cruising his way to the unanimous-decision win.

The win was Miyata’s third-straight victory, while the loss snapped a five-fight unbeaten streak for Hata.

As the UFC 189 tour made its last stop in Dublin, featherweight champ Jose Aldo was met with a torrent of abuse from the Irish fans. It might have been unpleasant, but it might also have been just what he needed.